


Cookies

by sulkysulkysulky



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, LGBTQ Female Character, LGBTQ Themes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-06
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-19 10:27:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,082
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29873244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sulkysulkysulky/pseuds/sulkysulkysulky
Summary: Penny stays over Emily's house for the night and Haley bakes them some cookies.
Relationships: Haley/Penny (Stardew Valley)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	1. Community Center

The event at the Community Center had gone on far too long. Willy’s presentation on jellyfish migration was engaging, but not enough to hold Penny’s attention. She had noticed Pam slip out with Shane halfway through. No doubt they were off to the bar for some early pre-gaming on a Friday night. Penny’s lips quivered at the idea of Pam returning home in the late hours of the night, no doubt disrupting her sleep with the loud clammer of her intoxicated body stumbling across their trailer. Finding comfort in blue haired woman sitting to her right, Penny leaned her elbow into Emily’s shoulder and rested her head on it, trying to comfort herself at the thoughts running through her mind. Emily shuffled her head toward Penny momentarily, trying not to break eye contact with Willy during his presentation. 

“You good, girl?” Emily whispered. Emily managed to shuffle her preoccupied arm a bit to rub the back of Penny’s head, just enough as to not disturb Penny’s position. 

Penny let out a sigh, looking longingly up at Emily in the hopes of gaining her full attention. The two had grown close. Penny frequently visited the forest near Marnie’s home to give Jas and Vincent some much needed fresh air during their tutoring. On the way, Emily would often spot them. In the beginning, she would just wave hello from her front porch, but eventually warmed up enough to ask Penny to join them after she’d seen Penny carrying a book on parrots. 

Emily reluctantly broke her gaze on Willy and shifted onto the red heads face. Slowly and precisely, Penny mouthed Pam’s name, and then nodded her head toward the door to indicate that her mother had left. Emily quickly rolled her eyes, understanding exactly what this meant. As a quick resolution, she offered Penny stay with her tonight. Even though her sister was on the “off-again” stage with her recent boyfriend, Alex, and would probably be a bit insufferable, Haley was baking cookies and the distraction of sweets would probably soothe her friend.


	2. The Walk Home

Penny and Emily stalled near the fireplace waiting for Haley. Last they had seen she had snuck into the kitchen after receiving a phone call. Penny didn’t mind waiting. She was happy to have a night of relief from her mother. She pictured how sloppy Pam probably was right now and began to feel sad as she meditated on the heat radiating from tattered fireplace. Emily noticed her friend slowly fade away and quickly took her hand. 

“C’mon, let’s go get Haley and leave.”

Haley was tucked into a corner of the kitchen, somewhat hidden by the extra barrels from the wine cellar. They could hardly make out the “we’re over for good” that sharply exited Haley’s mouth. She was firm yet soft with Alex over the phone, hoping to keep the argument private. Penny tried not to listen, her face beginning to turn bright red once she understood the severity of the conversation. Penny quickly forced her head down and pretended to be invested in the state of her shoes. She wiggled her toes anxiously to cope, hoping Emily would quickly air out the tension in the room. 

Penny stayed in the entry way to the kitchen as Emily charged in straight toward Haley. Unable to help herself, Penny’s eyes glanced up at the blonde. Haley seemed superficial, extremely into her appearance, yet there she stood with strands of hair disheveled, perhaps from rummaging her fingers through them due to the stress of her argument with her former lover. Penny inhaled sharply, her eyes tracing each out of place piece of hair. For some reason, she found Haley’s imperfect look intriguing. A tiny smirk made its way onto Penny’s face. 

“Haley, let’s go! You can make up with your boyfriend tomorrow.” Emily let out a chuckle toward the end of her sentence. 

Haley abruptly turned around, almost startled by her sister’s presence. Quickly realizing that Penny also stood there waiting. When their eyes met, Penny couldn’t help but immediately widen her eyes and then look down yet again. Haley quickly defended herself. “Gosh, spy much? Give me a minute, my god.” Her head shook back and forth in disgust. 

Emily rolled her eyes and lifted one finger up toward Haley’s face, indicated that the blonde had a short amount of time left to hash it out with her lover. To occupy herself, Emily glanced around the kitchen thoughtfully. When her eyes landed on the fridge, she turned to Penny with a mischievous face and dared to open the door. Inside, she was thrilled to find two unopened glass bottles of wine. She turned back over toward Penny, but looked passed her to ensure no one else was around. Carefully unloading the bottles from the fridge, Emily slipped them into the deep pockets of her army jacket. She closed the fridge’s door as if she were a child sneaking a snack in the middle of the night. Penny watched the back of her head shake up and down, realizing that Emily was giggling to herself. Tip toeing over to her sister once more, Emily reached carefully toward Haley’s phone, indicating for Haley to close it. 

\---

The three made their way out of the large wooden doors. The brisk air of the night hit Penny’s face hard, almost startling her. “So, what’s new with Alex?” Emily taunted. “He’s like, such an ass.” Their voices trailed off as Penny began to think of her mother again. Trudging through the grassy areas of northern Pelican Town, they made their way to the cobblestone path of the town’s center. The clatter of everyone’s shoes reminded Penny that the Saloon was close by. Haley abruptly stopped, causing Penny to flinch. The blonde nearly glistened from the cool light of the iron street post, only a light shadow covered a portion of her face. Penny tried to quickly analyze the girls expression, unable to comprehend her abrupt stop. 

“So what’s, like, your deal? Why are you so quiet? I’m over here pouring out my horrific relationship with some douche and you haven’t said one word.” 

Taken back by Haley’s directness, Penny began to stammer. Trying to be clever, she let out a little smirk and said, “Well, I heard you’re making some warm, gooey cookies tonight and I just couldn’t resist coming.” 

Something about Penny’s response was unexpected and excited Haley. She squinted her eyes and tried to figure Penny out. Haley hadn’t paid too much attention to Penny before. She was that girl who read books to the kids and reading wasn’t especially interesting to Haley. Maybe it was the whirlwind of emotions that Haley had faced tonight with Alex, but there was something refreshing about Penny. Maybe there was more to her than books and children. 

“Just so know, gooey cookies are NOT, like, good.” Haley claimed matter of factly, excited by the repertoire that would follow. 

Emily quickly interjected, “Haley LOVES burning the cookies. We need to watch out for her.”

A little bummed by Emily’s interference, Haley began to pick up her pace again.


	3. Baking

Penny loved how spacious Emily’s home was. There was room to stretch, to lounge, to hide.

“God, Haley, how many times do I need to tell you to clean up after yourselves? Look at the couch!” 

Penny quickly interjected. There was something comforting about the mess. “It’s totally fine! Much better than my living room.” She lifted her hand to her mouth and covered up a giggle as she saw Haley beat red in her periphery. 

Penny settled on the couch, observing the minimalist décor, pretending not to notice as Haley quickly shuffled to grab the dirty clothes that found their home on the leather seat. As Haley hurried toward her room, she lightly opened her room just enough to shove the clothing through. Forgetting to close it all the way, Haley made her way into the kitchen without saying a word.

Emily and Haley’s communal spaces were very bare. Their living room was simple; a bookshelf, a dresser with a globe, and some house plants made up the entire room. Penny had been in Emily’s room once before; the vibrant pinks, interwoven with the starry sky painting was a contrast to where she sat now. Perhaps the sisters’ styles clashed too much and that’s why their living room was so modest. She pictured the two arguing over the design of the living room until they exhausted themselves and made the room bare bones. She then found herself wondering what hid behind Haley’s door though. How different was her style? She imagined floral perfume wafting through the air, perhaps a vanity filled with eye shadows, a frilly bedspread. Penny felt an urge to uncover what was behind that door. She leaned over to observe the cracked open entry. It was too dark to see. Maybe one day. 

Emily was preoccupied with the stereo near the front door and attempted to crank up some tunes. She found herself slowly beginning to sway back and forth to the pop music, closing her eyes and losing herself in the moment. Penny awkwardly continued her gaze on the decor, not wanting to intrude on Emily’s moment alone with herself. Haley, sensing this, called out for the red head, and asked her to make her way into the kitchen. 

Their kitchen gave off log cabin vibes. Wooden walls, wooden cabinets, wooden furniture. The light blue tile of the floor stood out like a sore thumb. It was cold on Penny’s feet as she approached Haley. 

“Sometimes my sister is, like, sooo weird.” Haley muttered. “Ignore her and help me. Grab the pan from the lower cabinet over there.” She casually stated, as if her and Penny had been friends for years. Standing up straight, Penny nodded and headed over to grab the pan in an almost robotic fashion. She was taken aback by Haley’s bluntness, her ability to be so demanding with someone she hardly knew. Penny hadn’t really spent too much time with Haley. She deemed her Emily’s younger preppy sister: beautiful, but impersonal. Now, I guess, would be the time when she figured out if that were true or not, yet it was still hard for Penny to loosen up with people she hardly knew. She spent most of her time with fictional characters, characters who would never form an opinion on her because she was not a part of their world. She was just a fly on the wall. 

As she leaned toward the cabinet, Haley began some small talk. “So, Pen-ny.” Penny couldn’t help it as her face began to redden. The way she pronounced her words made it seem like she was a Valley girl. She wondered where the blonde had picked that up. Carefully grabbing the silver, worn out pan from the wooden cabinet, Penny shifted herself around to face Haley, painfully aware of the color of her face. 

Haley was quick to notice. Her stomach subtly filled with butterflies. She enjoyed making people uncomfortable—it made her feel powerful. But more so, she enjoyed that simply saying the quiet girls name made her face bush. It was kind of cute, and a big relief. Alex had become immune to Haley’s charm. She spent most of her time frustrated by his lack of enthusiasm for her presence. Easing herself into this newfound power, she continued: “What kind of cookies do you like? Please don’t tell me you’re like my sister and enjoy those nasty gooey cookies.” She rolled her eyes slightly and smirked. 

Penny tried to loosen up, noticing that Haley was interested in some lighthearted banter with her. She let out a little giggle, lifting her shoulders up and down. She shifted her head toward her feet, figuring out how she wanted to answer her. Wanting badly to seem sharp, to be able to participate in this debate, she quickly belted. “Excuse me, gooey cookies are the only way to go. I might have to watch the oven with you in here.” 

Haley playfully spread her arms out and slid her feet so she could stand guard in front of the oven. “No way! Infact…” Haley leaned her arm backwards, attempting to grab the wooden spoon laid out on the counter. Grasping it finally after a few failed attempts, she swung the spoon forward in a sword-like manner. “Get back!” Wiggling the spoon back and forth in front of Penny’s face, she began to chuckle.


End file.
